Most of us will be familiar with traditional interview questions but from time to time employers will test applicants with unusual questions in an interview.  Usually asked by big brands, as obviously, they want the best of the best. Candidates who can think on their feet under pressure. 

If you are interviewing with a big brand, expect to be tested, but don’t expect to have the answers at your fingertips. The key is to pause, thinking about the question, respond calmly and logically. Your willingness to embrace an unusual question and your efforts to give a logical answer will be looked upon favourably by an employer, whatever answer you eventually arrive at. 

Here are some strange questions which have been previously asked in interviews: 

• What biscuit would you be and why? 
• Room, desk and car – which do you clean first? 
• How would you get an elephant into a refrigerator? 
• If Germans were the tallest people in the world, how would you prove it? 
• How would you cure world hunger? 
• Pepsi or Coke? 
• If you wanted to bring your dog to work but one of your team members was allergic to dogs, what would you do? 
• Design an evacuation plan for the building 
• Name a prank you would pull on x manager if you were hired. 
• If you could be remembered for one sentence, what would it be? 
• Tell me a joke 
• What’s your favourite song? Perform it for us now.” 
• You’re a new addition to the crayon box, what colour would you be and why? 
• On a scale from 1 to 10, rate me as an interviewer 

…Now, let’s review how to answer the strange interview questions.  

What biscuit would you be and why? 

This question is trying to decipher your kind of personality, or possibly the interviewer wants to know if you’ll eat all the digestives on a tea break. Either way, the first biscuit which comes into my head are my favourite biscuits, Chocolate cookies. A common choice I’m sure, but everyone loves a chocolate cookie. 

What your favourite biscuit says about you 

Room, Desk and Car – Which do you clean first? 

• Desk 
• Room 
• Car 

Whichever order you decide, the interviewer is most likely interested in your reasoning. What logical approach are you taking to an unknown situation? 

How would you get an elephant into a refrigerator? 

This sounds like a joke question, but try to arrive at a logical answer. 

• Is it a baby elephant, if so a chest refrigerator may be adequate? 
• If it’s a full elephant, I guess we would need a custom-made refrigerator 
• Bring the elephant to a sub-zero climate such as Antarctica- essentially a giant refrigerator 

If Germans were the tallest people in the world, how would you prove it? 

Take a consensus of the average person’s height in each country in the world and compare it to German’s average height. 

How would you cure world hunger? 

This question is massive. These are only some suggestions: 

• Focus more on globalisation in poorer countries 
• Provide facilities/training for locals to produce more food 

Pepsi or Coke? 

This could just be a personal choice, but Coke has always seemed to be slightly superior to Pepsi. Most likely due to its marketing advantages from previous campaigns such as initiating a red Santa Claus and developing ‘bring a coke home’ Christmas Campaign. 

More differences between Coke and Pepsi

If you wanted to bring your dog to work but one of your team members was allergic to dogs, what would you do? 

This is a question analysing your caring side, you can’t cause problems in the office with team members, but you also can’t harm the dog by leaving it in the car all day. What are your options?

• Bring the dog on a day your team member is off 
• Don’t bring your dog to work 

Design an evacuation plan for the building. 

This is analysing your attention to detail. Have you looked at the building when you came in, are you aware of the layout of this floor? 

I guess the rule here is to, pay attention to the building on arrival.  

Name a prank you would pull on x manager if you were hired. 

This is another analysis of your personality, it’s a great measurement to see how you would fit into the team. In addition, to assessing what you think is funny and acceptable in a work environment. 

If you could be remembered for one sentence, what would it be? 

This last sentence will provide insight into what you most care about in life or what means to you the most. This can be a judge of your character and interests, are you going to be a good team fit? What do you care about?  

Tell me a joke 

If you’re caught off guard this can be difficult to think of on the spot. Do you resort to how did the chicken cross the road? This is blatantly boring and not very creative. On the other hand, you don’t want to offend anyone with “three men walk into a bar..” kind of joke.  I suggest dad jokes are probably the best, they are so embarrassing they are funny. 

What’s your favourite song? Perform it for us now. 

This question assesses your confidence, can you perform a song in front of strangers? I guess you’re confident enough to do anything. Especially if you can’t sing. 

You’re a new addition to the crayon box, what colour would you be and why? 

This is a chance to be creative, make up a colour? Go beyond the usual RGB, if the job seeks a creative individual this is your time to shine.  

On a scale from 1 to 10, rate me as an interviewer 

Is this a question asking you to suck up to the interviewer or is it a test to see if you can critically analyse? Can you give constructive criticism? This is the real test to decipher what the interviewer wants from you. If you’re applying for a manager role or senior position, then yes provide genuine advice. Try not to show fear in high pressured situations, even if this job depends on it.  

Please note that any answers I have provided are out of context. The best way to approach these types of strange questions is to understand what the interviewer is asking you and how your answer could be relevant to the job.  

Learn what questions have been previously asked in Google interviews  

If you’re interested in a career move and would like to speak to one of our friendly recruiters in confidence, please get in touch on 028 9091 8529 or email your CV to hello@corvus.jobs.   

What is a counteroffer?

You’ve nailed the interview(s), you’ve had a call from your Recruitment Consultant with the great news that the new company formally want to offer you the position.

Brilliant, your hard work has paid off!

All you must do is hand in your notice which can be daunting. You have a sigh of relief after you’ve handed in your notice. Then you get called into your current boss’ office, you’re offered a counter-offer, usually more money or a promotion to stay.

You’re torn, what do you do now?

Here are 6 reasons why you should never take a counter-offer

Recognise your worth

Why has it taken for you to resign to prompt your employer to give you the promotion, responsibility or pay rise you have been asking for? Professional development should be rewarded due to hard work and not out of fear of losing staff. The culture of your workplace could not be rewarding your hard work. You’ll soon be in the same situation again.

Broken trust

You’ve essentially fired your Manager. You have expressed your desire to leave and your Manager is unlikely to completely trust you again.

Money doesn’t solve your problems

Unfortunately, money will not make your work environment nicer, give you better projects to work on or remove that Sunday night fear. You’ll just be able to buy slightly more expensive coffee to catch your tears at work. This short-term gain most likely won’t pay off in the long run. Many promises made during the counteroffer period do not come to fruition and you may find yourself even more frustrated and eager to leave.

You’ll end up leaving

80% of candidates who accept a counteroffer from their current employer end up leaving within 6 months. Not only will you leave but you’ll have damaged your reputation with your employer and burnt bridges. Going all the way to offer stage with a new employer, only to turn them down to stay where you are a waste of everyone’s time. Are they likely to give you that same offer 6 months down the road – employers will remember that you jilted them at the altar!

Your Manager is buying time (and maybe their job security)

Depending on your Manager, they might not care if you leave, they’re more worried about you walking out and there being no one to replace you. The cost of no one in your role can be very costly and it can also reflect poorly on a Manager if they are losing a valued team member.

Rock the boat

Once your office or co-workers get a whiff of your £5 or 10k pay rise the company environment may be damaged. Resentment could grow from your co-workers. They may be thinking, ‘Oh, Susan handed in her notice and got an amazing pay rise, maybe I should do that too…’

Expectations will also be raised in terms of what you are expected to deliver – if you are given a pay increase and improved conditions, your existing employer will have significantly increased expectations about repaying them, which can lead to friction.

Conclusion

It’s important to remember why you were planning on leaving in the first place. Appreciate the value of taking this new opportunity. There were reasons you were leaving your current employer, create a pros and cons list of starting fresh at a new company. One thing that is important during this period is to talk to your Recruitment Consultant. Let them know your thoughts on this negotiation period they should be there to advise and recognise which would be the best opportunity for you.

It can be a scary process changing jobs which is why most people can see the easier option of simply staying where they are.  Workers who change jobs earn an average pay raise of £2,066 per year or 5.2% (compared to the 2.9% national average) – when did you last get a pay rise? – Glassdoor Economic Research, Why Do Workers Quit? The Factors That Predict Employee Turnover February 2017.

Benefits of changing jobs when you’re unhappy

A reminder of why you were changing your job in the first place.

•    Your mood

It will feel like a weight has been lifted off your shoulders. When you’re unhappy, it can affect not only your mood in work, but your life outside of work. Your mood affects the people around you. Changing jobs can help improve your relationships with family and friends.

•    Fresh start

When you’re interested in changing your job, it’s usually to either get away from negativity or you’re attracted by opportunity. This could be an opportunity to take a step up in the career ladder and I don’t necessarily mean more money, I mean more responsibility, career development, new projects, better experience – an overall better career path.

•    Stay sharp

When you change your job, you need to learn to adapt to new work environments, face new challenges and possibly even work with new technologies. You’ll meet more people in your industry and broaden your knowledge in your sector.

•    Better job

In addition, to feeling more valued, this could be an opportunity to achieve a far better remuneration package. Whether that means a better pension, less travel, additional training more flexible working or bonus structure to name a few. This could give you overall better satisfaction in work.

If you’re currently looking for a job or maybe you’re considering a change it is important that you do the following things to ensure you are making the best move for your career.

1.    Create a list

Create a list of reasons why you want to change jobs. This will affirm whether you’re making the right decision to change your job and what you are looking for in a career move. This will prevent any embarrassment for yourself and the recruitment consultant if you end up accepting a counteroffer and take it because of last-minute promises.   

2.    Find a niche recruiter in your sector

This is important for a number of reasons. They will have expert market knowledge on which companies are good to work for, who is currently recruiting, and who will be someone to fight your corner throughout the job search process.

3.    Glassdoor is your friend

If your recruitment consultant suggests a company you haven’t heard of, or even if you have. Check out their Glassdoor reviews. It’s important that you’re moving to a company where things will get better, not a toxic environment where the staff are unhappy in their jobs.

Learn more about job searching in Northern Ireland

If you’re not looking for a job but would like to learn local professionals’ career stories and know what’s going on in the market in Northern Ireland? Why not listen to our career podcasts

Interviewers are looking for a lot of things in an interview, but the following 7 aspects are the key features which make a lasting impression. Give yourself the best chance in your interview by preparing the following: 

Confidence 

Believe in yourself and what you’re saying. It’s difficult for an interviewer to believe in your ability or picture you in the business when you’re not confident in your own ability. An interviewer wants to give you an opportunity; don’t give them a reason to not give you the job. Present yourself as a capable, authentic professional who is not out of their depth. 

The key to building confidence for an interview is preparation. 

Preparation 

Everyone knows the phrase ‘If you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail’. It’s generally true in terms of interviews, being unprepared shows a lack of interest or ability to do the job. The purpose of an interview is to show a company you’re capable of doing the job and are interested in working for that company. Use bullet points to learn information rather than paragraphs as paragraphs will sound rehearsed and thus not natural. 

Learn more about preparing with our blog ‘How to prepare for an interview.’ 

Open to Learning New Things 

Interviewers like to know that you won’t be resistant to change, most jobs require someone who is able to adapt to the company’s way of doing things. This could be in the form of using a new technical tool, software application or process. An interviewer may also want to see that you’re willing to proactively explore what’s new in the industry, learn new things and go to networking events. Show that you’re adaptable.  

A Good Handshake 

The well-known professional welcoming gesture of a handshake is very important to make your first impression in an interview. No one wants to grab a limb or clammy hand to shake. A strong handshake shows confidence, preparation and attention. You want to make this a confident and professional introduction to the interview. 

As Tony Morrison, Vice President of Cashinko, has written, you may not remember your last good handshake but you certainly you remember your last bad one!  

Don’t be remembered for the wrong reason. 

Posture 

Non-verbal communication is extremely important, an interviewer wants you to look engaged and interested in this opportunity. Maintaining a steady and upright posture will ensure that you look attentive and professional throughout the interview. 

Eye-contact 

Maintaining good eye contact is key to showing you’re confident. A small gesture such as holding eye contact for a good length of time could show that you’re confident, honest and engaged in the interview. 

Try to make your eye-contact natural and not forced, pay attention to your non-verbal communication as you could be giving away information without even realising it.  Holding your gaze while they are talking is important to show you’re listening. Practice your posture and eye contact before the interview. 

Being Yourself 

“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken,”- Oscar Wilde 

  

It’s easy to tell if someone is trying to be someone they’re not, especially a hiring manager who probably interviewers 10’s or 100’s people a year. Be natural, if you’re nervous, take your time to pause and think about what you’re saying. 

If you’re currently searching for your next career move, why not view all our jobs or send your CV in confidence to hello@corvus.jobs.